New restaurants, cafés and bars in KL to try this month

By the same people behind Zouk Singapore comes this newest addition to the nightlife scene up in the highlands of Genting. RedTail Bar by Zouk is calling itself a new-style social gaming lounge, bringing fun and games to a whole new level.

With its multitude of mamaks alongside bars and clubs that blare out Top 40 hits, Changkat Bukit Bintang isn’t where you’d normally go for a quiet romantic night out – which is why Cielo KL is such a welcome addition to the chaotic nightlife hotspot.

KL is no stranger to Texan barbecue joints with cult favourites Beard Brothers’ BBQ and Mom’s BBQ food truck, but The Burnin’ Pit dwarfs them in terms of scale and ambition. Occupying a prominent corner lot on Desa Sri Hartamas’s main strip, the two-storey restaurant is the lifelong dream of Kok Fung, who fell in love with the art of slow-smoked barbecue after spending a few years exploring the US and learning from local pit masters there.

What started out as a humble vegetarian eatery in Bangalore almost a century ago in 1924, Mavalli Tiffin Rooms – or MTR – now has multiple outlets across Asia and the Middle East. Its latest outpost in KL promises hearty South Indian vegetarian fare that’s not only affordable, it’s also good for your waistline.

KL’s most talked about bar at the moment is also the city’s scariest – or at least tries to be. Walking past The Deceased’s front door to head to the rooftop bar feels like going through a House of Horrors made by college students – audio recordings of ghostly whispers and groans play on loop, while on either side of the staircase are crimson-streaked walls, scrolls and an altar adorned with a black-and-white photo of a presumably dead woman – or a Willow-filtered Instagram selfie.

Run by the co-owner of Klang’s Seraph Awaken Chun Hoong, Prana Alchemy is a coffee shop offering a compact list of Turkish-style coffees. With Seraph Awaken’s success and growing fanbase, Hoong finds it difficult to add new creations onto the café’s menu as he worries they won’t be able to cope with the demands; hence the birth of Prana Alchemy.

Restaurants that make their own pastas are nothing new, but few in KL, if any, claim to specialise in it. Enter Grano Pasta Bar, APW’s latest restaurant that aims to introduce KLites to a range of pasta that goes beyond the usual spag bol, aglio olio and creamy carbonara.

More than two years after it first opened in George Town, Penang, homegrown soft serve brand Urban Artisan has finally arrived in KL. Known for their photogenic and unique soft serve combinations, Urban Artisan is the newest kid on the block rejuvenating KL’s oldest streets with the same brand of hip nostalgia provided by the likes of PS150, Chocha Foodstore, Botak Liquor and Merchant’s Lane.

Seemingly untouched by modern development, this small residential area tucked between Jalan Sin Chew Kee and Jalan Galloway is home to some of the city’s most popular haunts – VCR Café, Pahit and Sarang Cookery. Adding to this list is 8haus – a café offering Western-Asian fusion fare in cosy surrounds.

Led by the team behind Jalan Batai’s Yellow Brick Road, Wizards is where you can find brunch and dinner favourites done right: buttermilk fried chicken burgers, comforting rice bowls and braised lamb shank are just some of the menu's highlights. 

Just when we were worried that the year’s F&B scene will be little more than a succession of safe-betting brunch cafés and comfort-food restaurants, up comes Beta KL with their bold venture into modern Malaysian cuisine.

Château DeCanter offers plenty of breathing space – plush leather chairs, three private rooms and an airy smoking area cater to a wide range of drinkers looking for a place to lounge about. Both Old and New World wines are well represented, but it’s really the selection of Old World wines that catches our eye.